All Quiet on the Western Front

Hooray! It is Saturday, and I only worked until 2am yesterday, so I got what could considered a "normal" amount of sleep, IN THE DARK. Which is much better than full-night shift sleep that happens when the sun is out. I'm probably one of the only people in the Northwest who is actually relieved when I get off work at 7:30am and it is raining. Because there really is nothing worse than wasting a sunny day sleeping!

 I'm drinking my coffee, glancing at sweet, old Dog (who is waiting for me to get off my arse and go for a run, or at least a walk), and feeling very contented with my life. I wanted to post about how content I am on Facebook, but that just seemed smug. So instead, I'll write a whole blog entry here about it. :)

 I should really get moving. I need to do my shoulder exercises prescribed by my PT, then take Dog outside, then hang out with Boyfriend and some of our friends tonight. Ah, I love weekends off! 

(Yet Another) Post on Running

Last night, I was charge RN, and worked with a rockstar team of nurses, as well as an awesome attending and some great residents and a fun flow supervisor. It is wonderful when you get to be your best self at work- I knew all the patients were in smart, caring, competent hands. We communicated really well, and that allowed me to be check in on patients and staff and have time to demonstrate caring and leadership (at least, that's how I felt :). It was a great night. I slept really well today and then had a great run with the Dog.

 We went to the local dog park, which is a fenced-in area bounded on one side by a huge lake, and on the other by a restored wetlands and park. Dog, who can be moody (much like her owner), today was enjoying the brisk weather and was in a sociable mood, running and sniffing every other dog in attendance. She even played in a water a little bit, which is rare unless the water is calm. Then we left the dogpark and entered the park/wetlands. We ran off leash through a park empty of other visitors, except a few other rebellious dog owners whose dogs were also off-leash. Then I releashed Dog at the wetlands and we ran through a marvelous world full of freshwater ponds, a congress of crows, a raft of ducks, beautiful stands of red alder, cottonwood and marshes. I ran without listening to ipod music, and instead listened to the music of the world around me- twittering birds, the wind whispering through the trees and brush, the sound of Dog's jangling tags and my own footsteps. 

 It wasn't my longest run, or my best athletic effort, but it was soothing to my soul and so sweet to be healthy enough to treat my body well, when I see those who cannot so often at work.

Slogging Through Molasses

No lie, the new j-o-b has been stressful. It isn't so much that now I'm middle management, and people think I have more power than I do, or that people I used to giggle with look nervous when I'm around, or that I am working- in the same week- days, evenings and nights-, or that I'm unsure of what I'm impacting, when I know that having an impact means so much to me...no, it's all of those things. And more. It's coupled with the fact that I'm taking a grad class, and trying to have a healthy, good relationship with Mr. Wonderful, and stay healthy physically, mentally and spiritually, and keep in touch with friends, and relax and go grocery shopping and remember to fill up the gas and vacuum and do bills and laundry (laundry! Biggest mistake of last year was thinking that saving 100 bucks on rent would be worth trooping to the in complex laundry facility. Note: it is worth the convenience of having your own W/D!)...it's all of these things, and more.

 I think I've done a pretty good job, though, to be honest. When things are getting to much, there is nothing wrong with a call to Mom and a good cry. Or a glass of wine, or a pedicure. And Mr. Wonderful is really wonderful. In my (not very extensive) understanding of relationships, there is a time when you either start laughing together more, or less, as the newness wears off. Luckily, we're laughing more, and that is a great thing.

 The Dog is doing well, too, and, as dogs are wont to do, provides a source of comfort and love on days when it is all too much. She's getting older, she can't run as far or as fast, but is a study in how to age gracefully and maintain your spirit. She does what she wants, and can, and sleeps when she's tired. It's very honest.

 But here is what I've decided. I'm at one of those points in life where you can either step up and things are hard, but you move towards something new and better, or you coast. I don't think coasting is always wrong, but for me, this is the time to move, and I believe that when you put effort in, you get positive results out, and it is for that reason I'm willing to endure some tiredness.

 That, and the fact that I"m going on a tropical vacation in two days. Aloha! :)